FDA fruit recall impacts Delaware

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Fruit potentially contaminated with listeria monocytogenes has been removed from Costco, BJ's Wholesale Club, Sam's Club and Trader Joe's locations in Delaware.

Following an U.S. Food and Drug Administration recall notice Saturday, the local retail chains removed whole peaches (white and yellow), nectarines (white and yellow), plums, and pluots from sale. Certain lots of the fruit that were packed at the California-based Wawona Packing Company between June 1 and July 12 may be contaminated, according to a release by the Delaware Division of Public Health. Wawona issued a voluntary recall after an internal company testing.

The division has confirmed their removal.

Lisa Watson, spokesperson for Wawona, said it's possible other wholesalers could have received the recalled fruits. While a comprehensive list was unavailable Thursday, she said "they've all been notified".

"The company (Wawona) is collecting information from retailers and wholesalers to make assessments of the progress," she said.

As of Thursday there were no illnesses reported in Delaware or statewide. Still, health officials caution consumers who purchased these fruits to dispose of them or return them to the store where they were purchased.

Officials urge that any fruits stored in contact with the recalled products should be disposed of as well and all areas of potential contamination should be sanitized.

They recommend that shelves, bins or other areas where recalled products were stored can be cleaned with hot water and mild dishwashing detergent, then rinsed and dried with a clean cloth or paper towel.

During the internal testing, the company shut down the implicated packing lines, retrofitted equipment, and sanitized the facility, a Wawona release said. Retesting yielded negative results.

Listeria can cause serious infections in young children, frail or elderly individuals and others with weakened immune systems. Infection among pregnant women can cause miscarriages and stillbirths.

However, healthy individuals may suffer only short-term symptoms such as high fever, severe headache, stiffness, nausea, abdominal pain and diarrhea.